Chance Encounters, Forged Paths
by DameNeko
Summary: Lina and Zelgadis join paths once again after 10 years. But what has become of their old companions? And who is MXPT?
1. Default Chapter

Chance Encounters, Tied Regrets

A/N: Bonjour everyone! This idea popped up in my head, so I decided to write it out before I get into the next chapter of my yet-to-be-appropriately-titled Slayers fic. Sooo all characters © appropriate owners. But this storyline is all MINE mwahahah! And now…on with the show

_Chapter 1: He who stalks in black_

The seaport town could be described in a series of contradictions: busy and easy-going, business centered and ocean supported, beautiful but with underlying decadence of the drug trade. Oddly enough, it was where the now 20 something Lina Inverse had made her home.  
Several years ago (and by several I mean upwards of ten), Lina had parted ways with her traveling companions. In some ways, the parting was very permanent.   
On this particular day, it was unusually sunny despite the gathering gray-cotton clouds. Lina strolled merrily down the center street lined with carts full of trinkets. Several people called out her name, who she waved to jauntily and offered a familiar smile. She had become a fixture of the community in the three years she had lived there. Not only did she serve as a protector of the town, by means of destroying hopeful bandits and various monsters, but she also provided quite the income for the few restaurants in the town. She eventually planned to start up a business, but that is a tale for another chapter.  
Lina reached the end of the street, proud of her self restraint. There had been several interesting items for sale, but after what Lina had seen and done…magical trinkets held little importance to her jaded ruby eyes. She leaned against the railing and deeply inhaled the scent of the tumultuous ocean. From her flapping cape, she withdrew two beautiful white roses, the petals shimmering silver and gold in the light. She passed a perseverance spell over them, then tossed them into the waves.  
Another anniversary had passed, marking the deaths of Gourry Gabriev and Amelia Sailoon.

That night, Lina reclined in the back corner of her preferred restaurant. The table had been cleared of her plates, which had declined to half the number they usually reached since she stopped using such powerful magic spells. She took a long sip of the drink set in front of her and allowed her mind to drift back to the night which had haunted her with terrifying precision for more than ten years…  
---------  
Four figures stood, looking immeasurably small next to the huge demon looming in front of them. The demon was one of the highest up mazoku, and it's name was Casus-Orcus. It had recently rebelled against it's race and it's main objective was namely to kill off Lina Inverse and her companions.  
And it had, by large, succeeded.   
Lina had pulled out every trick in her bag just short of the Giga Slave. With a defeated look, she turned slowly to her three companions. "Guys…try to say your last goodbyes to L-sama. Maybe she'll deliver them to who you'll miss most. I'm going to try the Giga Slave."  
"Lina-no. You can't use it-imagine if you failed!" Amelia cried out in horror.  
Lina shook her head and shut her eyes. "The demon is regenerating from the last blow we gave it. Go do what you have to do. You have about two minutes."  
Tears smarted in Amelia's blue eyes and she turned and began to pray underneath her breath. Gourry gazed sadly at Lina for a moment then walked over to a large boulder. He began to singe Sylphiel's name into it with the hikari no ken. Zelgadis turned to Lina and called her name gently. Her eyes slid open and she heaved a sigh, a rather perturbed look on her face. "What's wrong, Zel?"  
He sighed deeply. "Lina, I know you feel you've exhausted all your options. I support your decision to use the Giga Slave. What will happen if it goes wrong?"  
"Darkness beyond twilight," she said wryly, a dry grin on her face.  
Zelgadis shivered and nodded. "I have faith that you can pull this off. But you if you're unable-"  
"There's only about half a minute left Zel."  
"Lina-I need to tell you something. I have to tell you-"  
Zelgadis was cut off sharply again as the demon gave an all mighty roar. Crimson flashes of light stained the sky as Lina heard screams just to her right…  
---------  
Lina flinched, clasping the mug in her hands tightly. She could sum the rest of the story up without the visions flashing in front of her eyes. Gourry and Amelia lying dead. Lina flipped out and immediately unleashed the Giga Slave. The only reason she didn't completely obliterate the world due to her lack of concentration was thanks to Zel's steady presence. Him leaking a good portion of his powers into her through a still hand placed on her slim shoulder.  
And once the demon was ripped apart, the ground all around them barren…the bodies of their companions incinerated. She could hardly breathe. There had been an uneasiness between them-something was off. It seemed that Lina though Zelgadis would spend his life mourning for Amelia, and he thought the same of Lina and Gourry.  
Lina gazed into the dredges of her drink, summoning an image of her blue-skinned companion up in the shallow ripples. "Zel…," she sighed unhappily. She scraped her chair back and left in a hurry.  
She didn't notice the black cloaked figure making haste to follow her.

Lina reached her small house and magically locked the door behind her, as if she could keep out the demons in her head with the familiar motions. She made her way down the hall to her room in the back, leaving the lights off. She didn't want to see the comforting objects of her home. They only served to remind her that she was more or less responsible for the deaths of two of her best friends in the world. Especially on this night.  
She fell down into her bed with a sigh, not bothering to remove her familiar sorceress garb, sans talisman. Much to Lina's surprise, she fell almost instantly into an uneasy sleep.  
The black cloaked figure hovered outside on the patio, gazing in through the glass doors and gauzy curtains. "Lina…," he murmured in a hoarse voice, his gray blue eyes taking in the tumbling locks of red hair in a hungry manner.

The next morning, Lina opted to eat breakfast at the quaint café just down the street from her house. It wasn't usually her choice of eatery-it was far too delicate and flowery for her tastes. But she needed something that morning that would not send the ghosts with their sharp, pulling fingers prying at her brain.  
She sat herself down in the wicker chair with a disgruntled sigh. An annoyed waiter who had followed with her food placed the teetering stack of danishes, bagels, and omelets down in front of her. He turned to leave but she cleared her throat. "Don't forget my coffee," she reprimanded with a smirk. "Black."  
The café quickly filled up. Lina watched the patrons enter and slowly fill up the small tables. People who didn't know each other often dined together in Aethra, and it amused her to see some of the most unlikely people sitting together.  
Her eyes traveled to the counter and her eyebrows darted up as she munched on her fourth danish. A tall slender man was awaiting his drink of choice. His garb was rather unusual for these parts of the country. He was garbed from the hood shadowing his face to his shiny boots in black. Even his sword was sheathed in black leather. She squinted at it's hilt, wondering if she had seen it somewhere before. She dismissed the idea quickly-she had seen many swords in her day.  
The man turned, holding a large cup of coffee. He was evidently scanning for a seat and Lina realized the only empty one was across from her. He approached the table on silent feet. "Mind if I join you?" he inquired.  
His voice was pleasant. Melodious, almost, like mahogany. She nodded her agreement, although she really would have preferred just the companionship of her dwindling breakfast items. Minutes passed in silence, Lina pretending not to notice his intent stare upon her as she gazed out the window.  
It began to irritate her after a while. She turned to face him abruptly, her eyes sparkling. "So. Are you going to talk, or sit here and stare? Perhaps you're wondering why someone as petite as I could eat so much food."  
He chuckled lightly, setting his cup down on a spare scrap of table. "Actually, I was wondering whether you'd tell me your name."  
Lina's eyes narrowed. There was something strange lingering about this man. The way he carried himself-his voice-the way he posed the question like a statement. "Perhaps. On one condition. You have to lower that hood of yours."  
The man chuckled again. "I'll agree to that."  
"Lina Inverse."  
The man seemed satisfied with the response. After taking another long sip of his coffee, he reached up his black gloved hand and tossed back his hood. Lina surveyed him in silence as his light violet hair cascaded into his marble pale face. He was rather handsome, with direct gray-blue eyes and a pleasant smile.  
His hair swept over one of his eyes and Lina was suddenly slammed in the stomach with a jolt of familiarity. "You-you-you-" she stammered.  
The man looked amused once more. His right eyebrow arched. "Something wrong, Lina?" he inquired pleasantly.  
"…I think I know you from somewhere."  
"Hmm. It could be possible."  
"What's your name?" Lina inquired.  
The man allowed silence to descend over the table again. Lina abandoned eating, it somehow seemed she absolutely needed to know his name.  
He leaned back in his chair, and just before she was about to say something angry, he whispered his name. So softly, in fact, she could not hear.  
"Sorry?" she said, irritated. "Speak up."  
"My name is…Zelgadis. Zelgadis Greywords."  
It took all of Lina's self control not to pass out.  



	2. Now Brought Into Light

_Chapter 2: Now brought into light_

"Zel?" she screeched in shock. Several people in the café turned to glare at her angrily. She ignored them, half risen out of my chair. "Oh-oh my-L-sama…," she gasped, her eyes abnormally wide.  
Zelgadis couldn't help but laugh quietly at her reaction. "What's wrong, Lina?"  
"You…," she trailed off, falling into her seat. "Damn, you look different. Where have you been? When did you get cured? How did you find me? What-what…wow," she trailed off, looking stunned.  
Zel took another infuriatingly slow sip of his coffee. "I have been traveling. Well, more correctly, I was on a revenge mission. I swore I would go about things in a specific order after we parted ways. To take revenge on the Casus-Orcus demon, find my cure, then come find you again."  
"Sit back. Talk. I have all day. L-sama…I missed you," she commented truthfully with a smile.  
Zel grinned. "I missed you as well. Perhaps we should go elsewhere, though? I don't think this café would particularly enjoy us manipulating their place of business for a long period of time."  
"Sure. Let's go down to the ocean."  
The two reunited companions made their way down there, and sat on a bench. Zelgadis began to speak and, for once, Lina reclined and listened in awed silence.  
"For about year, I hunted down various members of the Casus-Orcus demon's clan and killed them off. I heard you were doing the same elsewhere. After they were all dead, I spent…hm..maybe 5 or 7 years traveling and looking for my cure. To my delight, I finally found one up in the misted mountains, over on the eastern tip of the continent. It was in rather large temple, surprisingly run by chimeras like my former self. I asked them if they had any knowledge on cursed chimeras, on how to turn them back to their originally forms. And oh, did they ever.  
"They brought out a large tome. Remember, back when we first met up, how I thought my cure might be in the Clair Bible? Well, it was. This was an exact copy of everything from the Clair Bible relating to chimeras. The spell to turn me back was rather complicated, but we gathered everything we needed over the course of a year.  
"And finally, after a spell that took just over a week to weave, the stones on my body began to fall off like I had acquired leprosy. Then my hair began to turn back to normal, and after a few difficulties, we fixed up the last part of the spell and turned my skin back to flesh. I stayed with them for another year, and I helped them repair things around the temple. They also helped me to figure out how to use my magic without the protection of a stone skin."  
Lina couldn't help but interrupt him here. "That's amazing, Zel. I'm so happy for you. You look…well, quite honestly, amazing. Continue, though."  
Zel coughed, blushing with pleasure at her compliment. "Then I began to search for you. I didn't feel complete yet, without sharing this with my most dear companion. I heard winds of you passing, destroying demons, and followed you all the way here. I arrived here just yesterday, and acquired a room at an Inn just down the road. And here I am."  
Lina was still reeling from being called his 'most dear companion.' "Wow…Zel. That's just...great. Damn, let me give you a hug," she said with an impish grin. She leaned over, wrapping her slender arms around his middle.  
Zel huddled over, enfolding the petite girl in his arms. A sigh of contentment escaped his lips as the spiced apple scent of her hair drifted toward his nose in the wind. "Lina, do you remember…wasn't the anniversary of their deaths just yesterday?" he inquired, still not releasing her from his embrace.  
Lina was quite content to stay in his arms. "Yes," she replied with a slight sigh. "Why?"  
"Do you remember that I wanted to tell you something? That you wanted us to send goodbyes to those we'll miss most?"  
Lina didn't need to strain her brain to remember. Everything about that day was etched perfectly into her mind if they had happened only an hour ago. "Of course," she said in a puzzled voice, leaning back slightly. His arms tightened around her as if reluctant to let distance come between them, even if it was marginal. "I can't ever forget that day."  
"I want to tell you what I had to say. I was only going to tell you then because I didn't want to die without you knowing. Plus now, I have more confidence than I ever did when I was covered in hideous stone…" he trailed off.  
Lina made an impatient noise. "First of all, you were never hideous. That was just your perception, because you didn't believe people would look past your skin. Second of all, spit it out! You're driving me nuts!"  
Zelgadis chuckled and released her from his arms, incase there was a sudden outpouring of anger at his impending words. "I love you, Lina," he said hurriedly.  
Lina blinked and spluttered slightly in confusion. "Me?"  
"It's alright if you don't feel the same way. I just…wanted you to know…," he said, his voice dissipating into near a whisper.  
Lina shook her head feverently. "No-it's just that…I thought you were into Amelia. I thought you'd been, well, mourning for her desperately."  
Zelgadis blinked and smiled. "Not Amelia. She was like, a sister, or a good friend. No, it has always been you I loved."  
"Oh, L-sama! Zel…baka...you should have told me sooner!" she said, playfully punching him in the arm.  
He tilted his head and glanced at her questioningly. "Because I love you too," she said quietly, a bright smile wreathing her face.  
Zel nearly did a double take, but he didn't question her words. The smile on his face matched her's as he grabbed her in a tight embrace as if he'd never let her go again.

A year passed. Zelgadis seemed content to spend his days helping Lina on her rounds of Aethra. Much to their mutual delight, a flat on the top floor of the ocean side apartment complex had gone for sale. They had bought it, and moved in together three months ago.  
Demons would probably die of shock to see such a content Lina Inverse.  
Zelgadis awoke and peered with sleep blurred eyes at the clock. It was 7'o'clock…late for him, but early for Lina. With a grin, he rolled over, careful not to disturb the elfin girl lying sound asleep next to him. He reached over and tenderly caressed a few crimson strands out of her delicate face. She murmured his name, sliding closer to him in and pressing her hand against his bare chest. He draped his arm across her shoulder, gently running his fingers down her back.  
Lina shivered, her eyelids fluttering slightly as she began to awake. "Hmm…good morning, Zel," she murmured, rubbing her hand across her eyes to shake out the sleep.   
He leaned closer to her and pressed his lips against her forehead. "Good morning, Lina. Shall we go out for breakfast this morning?"  
"Yeah…I want to take a bath first though."  
He nodded and turned onto his back, languidly sitting up as she slid out of bed and pulled on a robe. A loud crash resounded suddenly in the living room, and Lina's head swiveled sharply in the direction of the closed door.  
"…what the," she hissed quietly. "I'll go check that out while you get dressed."  
Zel frowned but agreed. Lina held her hand out, a fire spell lighting it's way easily into her outstretched palm as she silently opened the door. She crept down the hall toward the living room, the former chimera following her in just under ten seconds. They reached the living room, and were instantly befuddled at what they saw.  
The window over the couch was shattered, and a large black bird perched on the back of the arm chair. It gripped a rolled up letter in it's beak. Lina snatched the letter from the bird, which instantly flew back out the shattered window.  
Zel stood behind her, pulling her closer so she was leaned against his chest as she unfurled the letter. It read: _Leave Aethra at once if you value your lives. There is a safe town just a day's travel down the road. Trust me-you can't afford delay. Signed, M.X.P.T_  
"What the hell!" Lina cried out in bewilderment. "MXPT?"  
Zel shook his head. "Should we go? We'll leave our stuff here, obviously, but…"  
Lina turned around and his arms automatically encircled her waist. "No. Zel, I thought you'd realize by now-this reeks of trap."  
"You haven't been bothered by anyone for ages now, Lina."  
"I know…," she sighed. "Call me skeptical. But-"  
They were interrupted by a sudden hammering on the door. "Lina Inverse, open the door immediately! This is the police."  
Lina turned back to Zelgadis, eyes wide.

A/N: So, what do you think? If there's enough people who like it, I'll put up another chapter this week. I plan to have them meet up with some more old companions in the next chapter. 


	3. Once more forced into flight

_Chapter 3: Once more forced into flight_

A/N: Welcome to the latest installment of Chance Encounters, Forged Paths. I'm so sorry that it took so long to get this chapter up, especially to those of you who wrote me asking to continue it. With all of FF.net's down time and my vacation, I had to kind of abandon my fics for a while. But since I should have some free time, I plan to get up at least two more chapters of this fic, and some of my other Slayers fic (I Can't Stand It.) Anyway, enjoy this chapter and I hope you're looking forward to the next one!

Lina and Zelgadis answered the police hammering on the door magnificently. They pulled out the two duffle bags they kept packed for emergencies (old habits die hard). They proceeded cast raywing, and flew out the broken window. A full minute later the police broke down the floor, only to find an empty apartment. The pair was long gone.  
"Cepheed in a bag, this is a pain in the ass," Lina groaned as she exited the cluster of bushes she had been changing in. She had abandoned her old outfit for the past year, but now she was back in it for sort of a 'throw off the whoever that might be by reverting to old ways' disguise. It felt oddly nice to be dressed in the gaudy colors, sweeping cape, and big jewels.  
"If this weren't such an inappropriate time, I'd say that you looked really nice back in your old outfit," Zel informed her with a sorrowful smile.  
Lina laughed and punched him playfully in the arm. "Yeah well, you don't look too bad yourself," she informed him, playfully eyeing the male in his old shamanism outfit. "Let's fly for a bit more-I want to get to this _safe town_ recommended by MXPT and figure out exactly what's going down."  
"Sounds like a plan. We should leave our stuff here though and just take the money. Throw them off track a bit more."  
"Whatever works," Lina stated and looted through her own bag, drawing out the velvet pouch of extra gold, and then found a bag of pretzels, which she shoved into the money bag and pinned to her belt. Always good to have a bit of food in emergencies. The two set off flying again, in companionable silence, save for calling out directions.  
They made good time. They had only been traveling about half a day. The two found a nice café and Lina collapsed, glad for a seat. She quickly ordered by handing the waitress the menu and saying "I want one of everything, unless it's meat-I want two of those. And I'll have a glass of wine…hell, bring the bottle."  
Zelgadis grinned and ordered a steak dinner. "It's nice to actually see you eat, Zel. I remember in the old days you used to just sit in the corner drinking coffee, watching everything."  
"Ah, not everything. Mostly just you," he stated. His personality had become much more open since he had found his cure and fell in love with Lina.  
Lina smirked at him. "I bet you say that to all the girls," she stated just before the waitress began to waddle over, burdened down by the first wave of Lina's food and Zel's steak dinner.  
After they had finished and paid, they began to wander around town, casually poking for clues. But the town was nice and relaxing, with narrow busy streets full of intriguing shops, and a range of high mountains gathering the town at it's lap.  
It was hard to worry about the broken window, and the mysterious note, and the police on Lina's trail…they weren't really worrying about anything. So it was a quite the surprise when they found themselves in a dead end alley with a large shadow gathering at the corners and streaming toward the center.  
Zel grabbed Lina to his side as he pulled out his sword, and she stepped away slightly so his arm was still around her waist but looser. She extended her arm, a ball of fire igniting at the spark in her eye.  
The shadow grew. The fire grew. And suddenly, the shadow twisted around like a living tornado, compacting, forming, and spewed forth a male figure.  
Which was promptly fireballed by Lina, kicked in the side, and had a sword hell to his neck before he could say 'Nice to see you again!'  
"What a delightful greeting, Lina-chan!" Xellos coughed from the pavement, twitching, as he clung to his wooden staff with the red jewel.  
Lina stared at the priest. Zelgadis stared. Xellos beamed back up through closed eyes. "Well don't you look handsome, Zel-kun!"  
"Shut up, fruitcake," Zel hissed, looking like if he had hackles to rise, that they would be up.  
Xellos laughed and got to his feet, and something dawned on Lina. "MXPT! Of course. MX…Xellos Metallium. But what's up with the TP?"  
"Trickster Priest! I thought it up myself, doesn't it sound lovely?" Xellos inquired.  
"Perfectly ironical and fitting," Zelgadis remarked dryly.  
"Oh, you should be nicer to the man who got you away from those nasty policemen hunting down Lina! It seems that a new fact has come up in Amelia's murder trial-"  
"What?" Lina screeched. "What murder trial?"  
Xellos sweat dropped. "Well, her father is still crestfallen, and it seems he has taken on a new advisor who…well, advised a trial. At any rate, the fact of the matter is they're going after you, Lina. They're going to charge you with the murder of a royal princess if they can find you."  
Lina groaned. "Great, just what I need. An angry crusading King of justice freak after me! Life has been so nice lately, why bring it up now? So far after the fact? Hm…Xellos, do you know who the advisor is?"  
"Yes!" Xellos replied in a chipper voice.  
There was a brief silence. Zel glowered at the mazoku, looking as if he would find delight in force-feeding Xellos his own spleen and intestines. "Spit it out, fruitcake."  
"But…Zel-kun, that…is…a secret," Xellos said in a high, taunting voice.  
Lina's eye twitched and something in her seemed to snap. She grabbed Xellos by the lapels, hauled him up, and shoved him against the brick wall. His eyes opened in surprise and he dropped his staff, dangling a foot off the ground. "Listen you dirty little demon," she hissed as she stared up at him.  
Her eyes were burning like the ninth pit of hell-fire, brimstone, pain, torture, and pure raw hatred shimmering out of them like Shabrinigdu himself had found new life in them. Xellos had been to the ninth pit, he did not enjoy it. So he just blinked and smiled blandly. "You have no right to withhold information from us after what you did. How you _abandoned_ us before that battle like the shit brained, liver bellied, chicken-footed coward you are. How you never came back. How we haven't seen hair of you or heard breath of you since those many years ago. How you did that-how you did that to-" she stammered, and trailed off for a moment, a painful emotion on her face.  
Zel watched her carefully. He knew what she was about to say. She knew she would break down again if Xellos didn't get out of there soon. "How you did _that_ to Filia, you dirty son of a bitch," her voice was barely a whisper anymore. The fire in her eyes died as her hands went limp and she dropped him to the ground.  
Zel shook his head. "Get out of here, fruitcake. We'll meet you at the Inn tomorrow night. And you will tell us everything you know, or I'll turn your inside out, one piece at a time."   
Xellos disappeared without replying.  
Zel hastily gazed down at Lina, pulling her close, but there was a far away look in her eyes. "Lina, darling, it'll be alright," he promised, nervous, smoothing down her hair with a shaky hand. She muttered incoherently and he shook her shoulders gently. "Lina please. We have to get back to the Inn and get some sleep. Love, I'm right here with you, nothing will happen. That's all in the past."  
"No it isn't Zel," she said softly, a broken look on her face. "Because Xellos hurt Filia worse than Amelia was hurt, worse than Gourry, worse than we hurt the Cassus-Orcus demon. You know the news. He took her away from the battle and showed her Amelia and Gourry dying, over and over and…just for the hell of it. Mixed it with scenes of the golden dragon slaughters. Until her mind snapped. He made her his slave…his toy…his little puppet. Oh Zel, I never told you…"  
Zel flashed her a confused look as he began to lead her out of the alley. "Told me what?"  
"Filia…she's still alive. I was playing with spells a few months ago and I tried a locater one. For the hell of it, I called for Filia; I knew I wouldn't find anything. But I did. She's still alive. She's on the island that Xellos' mistress lives in…God, Zel, he still has her…who knows what he's been doing to her all these years?"  
Zel's eyes narrowed with anger as he clutched Lina tightly and kissed her forehead, then cheeks, and kissed her lips gently. "When Xellos comes tomorrow, we'll get her back. Or we'll kill him."  
Lina nodded and wearily rested her head on his shoulder. "Zel…it hurts so much…I'm so tired."  
"We're going back to the Inn," he replied absently, thinking of ways to get revenge on a pain-loving mazoku. Not only had he been torturing Filia, whom he had always considered one of his closest friends, but he had scarred Lina's heart deeply. The woman who he loved and, if the police hadn't burst in, had intended to propose to that very night. Needless to say, things had turned out much differently than he had been plotting.  
The mazoku would pay.

Xellos watched from the shadows, smirking. "They're upset…they're angry…they're distracted from the real problem," he chuckled. The shadows next to him shimmered as a second mazoku phazed in.  
"What are you smirking about?" the female mazoku inquired with a mirrored smirk as she adjusted her silk kimono.  
"Oh, nothing. Let's just say the day we've all been waiting for is soon at hand, my love."  
"Excellent. Shall I return to my place with Prince Phil now?" she inquired, her long blond hair swinging into her blue eyes as she gazed up at the violet-eyed mazoku.  
The man turned to her and caressed her cheek, nodding. "Yes…"  
The woman leaned up and kissed him before she phazed out, leaving Xellos with a wicked smirk on his face. 


End file.
